GOGGLES!

Ezra Jack KeatsNew York, 1969 ‘Keats’s use of the tough, textured world of urban working-class life was unique in contemporary picture book making,’ writes Martin Salisbury. ‘He gave voice to African-American childhood in a way that had not been seen before. He was born in Brooklyn in 1916, to poor Polish-Jewish immigrant parents and spent several years as a studio comic-book artist, drawing backgrounds for Captain Marvel strips.’

PRAIA MAR

(High Tide) Bernardo CarvalhoPortugal, 2011 ‘The Portuguese publishing house Planeta Tangerina is one of the most innovative to have emerged in recent years. Its picture books are being noticed all over the world.
Praia Mar began life as a home-printed book for family and friends, with an introduction by Carvalho, explaining his relationship with the beach and the sea.’

THE LITTLE WHITE BEAR

Enid Marx London, 1945 ‘A distant relative of Karl Marx, Enid was first and foremost a pattern maker. Marx had been a student at the RCA in the early 1920s, along with Edward Bawden and Eric Ravilious in the group that their tutor, Paul Nash, described as “an outbreak of talent”. Illustration was one of her many activities and her few self-authored picture books are now highly collectible.’

THE MOON JUMPERS

Janice May Udry, illustrated by Maurice SendakNew York, 1959‘Maurice Sendak is perhaps best known for
Where the Wild Things Are, which was published in 1963. One of Sendak’s lesser-known titles, [
The Moon Jumpers] is a book that finds the great master in a lyrical, sensual mode. Udry’s richly evocative text tells of a sultry, moonlit summer’s night, from the perspective of a group of children playing outside before bedtime.’

PRO DVA KVADRATA

(About Two Squares) El Lissitzky Berlin, 1922 ‘After the Russian revolution of 1917, the harnessing of graphic art to the political objectives of the Soviet Union resulted in a period of highly inventive work in children’s books. In 1922 Lissitzky was the Russian cultural ambassador to Weimar Germany and here expresses the triumph of the red square of modernity over the black square of conservative decadence.’

DO YOU SEE WHAT I SEE?

Helen BortenLondon/New York, 1959 ‘This “art primer” that elegantly introduces children to the formal qualities of shapes, lines and colours was one of the
New York Times’ top 10 picture books of 1959. It was Borten’s first picture book as sole author and its integration of word and image to explain the power of design was way ahead of its time.’

ELLA’S BIRTHDAY

Betty SwanwickLondon, 1946 ‘Swanwick described herself as “part of a small tradition of English painting that is a bit eccentric, a little odd and a little visionary”. She studied at Goldsmiths, where tutor Edward Bawden recognised and encouraged her exceptional talent; she later returned to teach illustration at the college as Bawden’s successor.’

HIGH STREET

JM Richards and Eric RaviliousLondon, 1938‘One of the iconic illustrated books of the 20th century,
High Street gives us a glimpse of the interiors and exteriors of British high-street shops in the years leading up to the second world war. Ravilious had recently learned lithography, a medium that he would go on to use to great effect until his early death while serving as an official war artist in 1942.’

JOUR DE NEIGE

(Snow day)Komako SakaiParis, 2006‘Komako Sakai studied at Tokyo University of the Arts and went on to design kimonos and other textiles before turning to picture books.
Jour de neige tells the story of a child who wakes up one morning to find the world covered in snow and school closed, an exciting event that will be familiar to many. We barely notice that the characters, living in a high-rise apartment, are rabbits.’

GISELE DE VERRE

(Glass Gisele) Beatrice AlemagnaParis, 2002 ‘
Gisèle de verre tells of a girl born with transparent skin. Everyone can see through her and all her thoughts are visible. Inventive Alemagna uses transparent vellum paper to great effect as she tells the story, the form of the book becoming inseparable from the content. Well known in Europe, this multi-award-winning picture book maker is only now beginning to penetrate the English language market.’

I KNOW A LOT OF THINGS

Ann and Paul RandNew York, 1956‘It has been suggested that the first act of brand-identity creation that the legendary graphic designer Paul Rand undertook was that of changing his name from Peretz Rosenbaum.
I Know a Lot of Things was the first book by Rand and his wife, Ann. Ann Rand’s words seem tailor-made for Paul’s graphic vision, the two complementing each other with apparently effortless economy.’